Campaign Against Domestic
Violence

Support Rhiannon Brooker

-Join CADV and other women’s
rights campaigners to show support to Rhiannon Brooker
and all victims of rape and violence against women on 26 June, 2 pm, Bristol
Crown court

Rhiannon Brooker, a mother from Bristol, was recently convicted of
perverting the course of justice after reporting that she had suffered rape and
assault at the hands of her former partner. Campaign Against
Domestic Violence considers this case concerning, and symptomatic of a judicial
system which routinely fails victims of rape. In this case, like many others
the police ploughed more resources into investigating a reported victim of rape
than the alleged perpetrator. We would ask our supporters to join us on 26 June
when Rhiannon who is facing up to 6 years in prison is due to be sentenced.

Some more
information on the case can be found below:

·MsBrooker went to the police as the victim of
domestic abuse and rape by her then partner, Paul Fensome.

·Seeing the physical evidence of what he had done to her, they arrested Fensome and charged him immediately. He was incarcerated
for 33 days until the CPS decided that there was not enough evidence to proceed
with the prosecution.

·When Fensome was
released, the CPS decided to turn their attentions to MsBrooker. While dealing with the pain and
anguish of learning that her alleged attacker had been freed, and that her case
would never go to trial, suddenly she was being investigated.

·The investigation dragged on for more than two years (compared with less
than 6 months investigating Fensome), during which
time every aspect of Rhiannon’s life was questioned. The Avon and
Somerset Police investigated her private life, her medical records, her bank
recon rds, her old school records, University records, interrogated and
threatened her family, friends and acquaintances and ultimately tried to have
her child taken away from her by saying she was an unfit mother. Thankfully
Social Services saw sense and upon further investigation found nothing to
support the police allegations.

·Rhiannon was subjected to a shocking dawn-raid
style arrest early one morning with approximately ten police raiding her
mother's house. The police took her, her diaries and many other belongings, to
a police station where she was locked in a cell for 12 hours and given a
lawyer. Having been subjected to excessive intense questioning already and in a
state of shock due the unfathomable and unnecessarily traumatic arrest,
Rhiannon, who was in a cell solely because she had reported an attack, said she
wanted to end the investigation. She made a decision that I think many of
us would have done, she retracted her statement on the understanding it would
all to go away so she could get on with her life.

·The lawyer assigned to Rhiannon said that this would mean pleading guilty
to perverting the course of justice as she’d be viewed as having given a false
allegation, however given her situation, it would be understood and she would
just be given a caution. This couldn’t have been further from the
truth. The CPS and police pursued Rhiannon mercilessly, bringing her to the
situation she finds herself in today. She is the victim of rape, domestic
abuse and now, an outrageous police investigation that makes her the victim of
a broken justice system.

·The lawyer said he would write a new statement for her claiming it was all
untrue and she could sign it. The pressure to end at least some of the
pain was too much and this vulnerable, depressed, scared woman signed that she
was guilty. We have since learnt that Vicky Cook, Deputy Chief Crown
Prosecutor for the CPS is quoted as saying, “the brief was to put the questions
to the victim and push them until she broke down and made an admission so she
could be arrested for Perverting the Course of Justice”

·In their case the prosecution relied heavily on cell sites which raised
some inaccuracies in dates, which was unsurprising given the relationship had
lasted for several years, and is very typical in domestic abuse cases. Research
has shown time after time that memories can be
affected by trauma and that it is not uncommon for women to return to abusive
partners yet the prosecution relied on abuse stereotypes and rape myths
throughout their case.

·Women Against Rape have also supported Rhiannon
since her arrest, and continue to support her and a number of other women who
are being harassed by the police after reporting rape.